Large scale fabric attached architecture

Abstract

A plurality of fabric controllers distributed throughout a fabric attached architecture and each associated with at least one resource node. The plurality of fabric controllers configured to control each associated resource node. Resources of the resource nodes are utilized in virtual environments responsive to respective fabric controllers issuing instructions received from the fabric attached architecture to respective resource nodes.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method comprising:
 detecting a plurality of communicatively coupled resource nodes forming at least a portion of a fabric attached architecture, wherein respective resource nodes of the plurality of resource nodes comprise a respective baseboard management controller (BMC) and further comprise at least one of storage capability and compute capability, wherein the plurality of resource nodes are respectively coupled with a plurality of fabric controllers; 
 providing resource node capability information of a first resource associated with a first resource node of the plurality of resource nodes to the fabric attached architecture according to a fabric protocol responsive to a first fabric controller interfacing with the first resource node via a first BMC associated with the first resource node; and 
 utilizing the first resource in a virtual machine generated on the fabric attached architecture responsive to the first fabric controller issuing instructions associated with the virtual machine to the first resource node, wherein the instructions associated with the virtual machine comprises at least one data packet having a payload and a source address and a destination address, and wherein the first fabric controller has an address sequential to an address of the first resource node and comprising a data center identifier (ID), a rack ID, a chassis ID, and a fabric controller ID. 
 
     
     
       2. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein each fabric controller of the plurality of fabric controllers is physically connected to six other fabric controllers of the plurality of fabric controllers. 
     
     
       3. The method according to  claim 2 , wherein each physical connection comprises a 100 gigabit per second (GBPS) Ethernet connection. 
     
     
       4. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein each resource node of the plurality of resource nodes is associated with a respective fabric controller of a plurality of fabric controllers, wherein the number of fabric controllers is equal to the number of resource nodes. 
     
     
       5. The method according to  claim 4 , wherein the fabric attached architecture includes at least 5,000 resource nodes and at least 5,000 fabric controllers. 
     
     
       6. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of resource nodes comprise at least a first subset of resource nodes comprising a first type of product configured to operate according to a first firmware and a second subset of resource nodes comprising a second type of product configured to operate according to a second firmware; and
 wherein a respective fabric controller of the plurality of fabric controllers associated with a respective resource node of the first subset of resource nodes stores the first firmware, and wherein another fabric controller of the plurality of fabric controllers associated with a respective resource node of the second subset of resource nodes stores the second firmware. 
 
     
     
       7. A system comprising:
 a plurality of resource nodes communicatively coupled to one another to form at least a portion of a fabric attached architecture, wherein respective resource nodes of the plurality of resource nodes have at least one of compute capability and data storage capability, wherein the plurality of resource nodes includes a first resource node comprising a baseboard management controller (BMC) and a first resource; 
 a plurality of fabric controllers respectively coupled to the plurality of resource nodes, the plurality of fabric controllers including a first fabric controller communicatively coupled to the BMC and comprising a fabric processor, a switch, and a storage, wherein the fabric processor executes instructions stored in the storage to interface with the first resource node via the BMC and provide resource capability information of the first resource via the switch to the fabric attached architecture according to a fabric protocol; and 
 wherein the fabric controller is configured to utilize the first resource by sending instructions to the first resource node in response to receiving virtual machine information from the fabric attached architecture via the switch, wherein the virtual machine information comprises at least one data packet having a payload and a source address and a destination address, and wherein the first fabric controller has an address sequential to an address of the first resource node and comprising a data center identifier (ID), a rack ID, a chassis ID, and a fabric controller ID. 
 
     
     
       8. The system according to  claim 7 , wherein the fabric attached architecture is configured for between 500 gigabit per second (GBPS) and 700 GBPS internode connectivity. 
     
     
       9. The system according to  claim 7 , wherein the first fabric controller is directly connected to six other fabric controllers of the plurality of fabric controllers. 
     
     
       10. The system according to  claim 7 , wherein respective resource nodes have one and only one of compute capability and storage capability. 
     
     
       11. The system according to  claim 7 , wherein the plurality of resource nodes comprises a number of resource nodes and wherein the plurality of fabric controllers comprises a number of fabric controllers, wherein the number of resource nodes is equal to the number of fabric controllers, and wherein resource nodes and fabric controllers are paired such that each pair comprises one respective resource node and one respective fabric controller. 
     
     
       12. A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, wherein the computer readable storage medium is not a transitory signal per se, the program instructions executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform a method comprising:
 detecting, by a first fabric controller, a first resource node communicatively coupled to the first fabric controller, wherein the first resource node comprises a first baseboard management controller (BMC) and a first resource; 
 detecting, by the first fabric controller, a plurality of fabric controllers communicatively coupled to the first fabric controller and forming at least a portion of a fabric attached architecture, wherein respective fabric controllers of the plurality of fabric controllers are associated with respective resource nodes; 
 providing, by the first fabric controller, resource node capability information about the first resource to the fabric attached architecture according to a fabric protocol responsive to detecting the plurality of fabric controllers and interfacing with the first resource node via the first BMC; and 
 utilizing the first resource by sending instructions to the first resource node responsive to receiving virtual machine information from the fabric attached architecture, wherein the virtual machine information comprises at least one data packet having a payload and a source address and a destination address, and wherein the first fabric controller has an address sequential to an address of the first resource node and comprising a data center identifier (ID), a rack ID, a chassis ID, and a fabric controller ID. 
 
     
     
       13. The computer program product according to  claim 12 , wherein each fabric controller of the plurality of fabric controllers is directly connected to six other fabric controllers by a connection rated for at least 100 gigabits per second. 
     
     
       14. The computer program product according to  claim 12 , wherein the program instructions are further configured to cause the processor to perform a method further comprising:
 booting the first resource node on the fabric attached architecture responsive to detecting the plurality of fabric controllers and based on instructions received from the fabric attached architecture and transmitted to the first BMC by the first fabric controller.